On America’s Independence Day, Frank Ocean finally got free. He took to his personal Tumblr to clear up the chatter started by an UK journalist’s speculations that songs on his album referenced the pronoun “he” as it relates to love. He wrote a beautiful note, originally intended for the liner notes of his major label debut channel ORANGE, that candidly and masterfully told the story of his first love—a man—who was too afraid to love him back. The shockwaves from this announcement were immediate; thankfully, instead of enduring a tidal wave of negativity, an outpouring of support flooded onto social networks from fans and celebrities (such as Jay-Z, Beyonce, 50 Cent and Rita Ora) alike. His courageous admission was the first time a young, black male R&B singer had openly admitted to loving someone of the same sex.

Given the troubled history that hip-hop, and the community that creates it, has had with homophobia, many are asking whether or not Frank’s revelation points to the genre’s growing acceptance of homosexuality, bisexuality and, ultimately, individuality.

Well, in the decades before Frank Ocean became a rising star, hip-hop prided itself on hyper-masculinity, and proving one’s manhood, which unfortunately meant disassociating yourself from anything that could be perceived as “gay.” To wit, calling a rapper “gay” was the worst insult you could hurl their way. Even as the culture-at-large became more PC, this stance did not change much in the hip-hop community; petty catchphrases like “no homo” are still used to this day as to tell the world “Hey, I’m not gay. And saying no homo puts me in the clear.” Literally countless rappers have used offensive homophobic slurs in their lyrics, hence the attention being paid to Frank Ocean’s confession.

No one could’ve predicted the massive support Frank Ocean ended up receiving from the hip-hop community. As an R&B artist (not hip-hop artist as he is oftentimes conveniently labeled), his transparency had the potential to end his budding career. Ten years ago, it almost certainly would have. Luckily for Frank, people and the genre are headed in the direction of progression. But I wouldn’t jump the gun to proclaim it’s a new day that left behind the rotten stench of homophobia in rap.

Accepting Frank is one thing. It’s quite another to talk about how homosexuality is/was/will be addressed by rappers in the future. Supporting the channel ORANGE singer does not mean that the F word —the six letter one, not the four— will not be used in rap records. It also doesn’t mean that mindsets have completely changed. If artists publicly root for Frank, but covertly wouldn’t have a close gay friend because of fear of turning gay (as if there’s a such thing), or still say no homo, or still rap lyrics laced with derogatory remarks about gay people, then is the acceptance really a facade?

Hip-hop as a genre has changed; hip-hop as a culture has changed too. In an interview with MTV.com, Juicy magazine Editor-in-Chief Paula T. Renfroe said, “Hip-hop also has grown, society as a whole has grown and that’s the beauty of hip-hop, it reflects our culture and our society.” The fact that there is room for a male singer to sing about loving another man without backlash is an example of a huge stride both genres—R&B and hip-hop—have made.

Maybe Ocean’s bravery is huge step toward the right direction, or perhaps behind closed doors (which is likely) the hip-hop community’s feelings toward the LGBTQ community doesn’t mirror the hurtful ugly slurs. Whether hip-hop is forever changed by such a historic moment is unknown. But it is worth the question: Where do we go from here?

Here’s something to make Frank Ocean fans a little jealous. Hey, we figured we shouldn’t be alone in our jealousy of everyone who attended Frank Ocean’s Wiltern performance in LA last night. For his hour long set he performed “Pyramids,” “Sweet Thing,” and “Super Rich Kids,” with a surprise cameo of Odd Future’sEarl Sweatshirt. Ocean also covered Prince‘s “When You Were Mine” for a crowd of screaming fans. When’s the last time someone did a cover to the genius that is Prince? Although OC Weekly critiqued Ocean’s stage presence for not being “lively” enough, the deafening screams of attendees paint another picture. Read more…

It’s been a great year on the Billboard charts for country music artists like Carrie Underwood and Zac Brown Band. Last week’s Billboard 200 numbers are in, and Zac Brown Band scored big, holding down the No. 1 spot for Uncaged. Uncaged debuted with sales of 234,000, higher than predicted. With eight No. 1 singles in their catalog and their 2010 No. 1 album You Get What You Give there’s no surprise the group would soar to the top. Behind the seasoned ban at No.2 is R&B newcomer Frank Ocean. Read more…

50 CENT SHOWS SUPPORT FOR FRANK OCEAN
Haters be warned that, unless you want a taste of that famous 50 beef, you may want to give the Channel Orange artist a second chance, because 50 thinks that “Anyone that has an issue with Frank Ocean is an idiot.” [MTV]

It’s true. People don’t buy albums in massive numbers like the distant days of the 80s or 90s where going triple platinum wasn’t uncommon. That said, R&B sensation Frank Ocean is projected to do big numbers after digitally releasing Channel Orange a week early on iTunes after his appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The Def Jam artist is expected to open with 110,000-125,000 sales just from an iTunes release, which is pretty impressive considering he’s a new artist and had no additional retail push. Considering veteran Usher opened with 128,000 for Looking 4 Myself and Chris Brown topped charts at No. 1 with 134,000 sales for Fortune‘s opening week, Ocean’s slated success is a testament that fans will buy what they believe is quality music. Read more…

ADAM LAMBERT PLAYS FREDDIE MERCURY IN LONDON
Glambert dazzled the Hammersmith Apollo in London, where he filled in for the front man on Queen classics like “Another One Bites the Dust” and “We Will Rock You.” [RS]

Frank Ocean is winning! Following the buzz around his sexuality Ocean decided to use his own website to address the rumors once and for all. Days after revealing he’d fell in love with a man at 19, Ocean shocked everyone by releasing the digital version of his debut album Channel Orange a week early. The Internet went bananas quickly making it the No. 1 album on iTunes a couple of hours after its release. While we were busy indulging in the Stevie Wonder-esque voice over eloquent songwriting in Channel Orange, speculations were made regarding if Ocean’s early release was due to the massive support he received in opening up about his sexuality. ‘Was it a publicity stunt?’ was a common question tossed around like rice thrown at weddings. According to EW.com, Def Jam claims the early release was “all part of Channel Orange‘s unusual marketing strategy.” A marketing strategy that worked, might we add. Read more…

Rising R&B star Frank Ocean made his network TV debut on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon last night, creating a tsunami of trending topics along the way. A few hours before Fallon aired at 12:30 a.m., Pitchfork reported that Ocean’s highly anticipated Channel ORANGE LP would be hitting the iTunes Store at midnight, a full week before the album’s official July 17th street date; it promptly went straight to #1 on the charts, where it still sits at this time. Proving that he “gets it,” Ocean has also made his major label debut available to stream in its entirety on his Tumblr; as a result, the Internet is sure to be dominated by conversation about Frank Ocean again today, much like it has been for the last week and some change.

Ocean performed “Bad Religion,” a track off Channel ORANGE, aided by a string section and the legendary Roots crew. If you interpret the lyrics in a literal fashion, it can be read as a harsh critique of Islam (“If it brings me to my knees, it’s a bad religion”). However, peel back a layer or two and the song takes on an entirely different meaning, one in which Ocean struggles to deal with a love that’s both unreciprocated and, in the eyes of most of the world, unconventional. “This unrequited love/To me is nothing but a one man cult/Cyanide in my styrofoam cup/I could never make him love me,” he plaintively confesses, shedding some additional light on last week’s controversy regarding Ocean’s sexuality. It’s a bold statement from a very promising artist, and we look forward to spending a lot more time with the album over the coming days and weeks.

PAUL MCCARTNEY IS TEAMING UP WITH HALO CREATORS FOR NEW PROJECT
The former Beatle has hooked up with the team behind the hugely popular video game Halo to make some new music for, well, nobody knows yet. Nevertheless, this sounds like a project worth keeping an eye on. [RS]Read more…

PEARL JAM DIEHARD GETS HIS DREAM SET
Superfan Brian Farias has been to 108 Pearl Jam shows but none so special as the 109th, when the band played a setlist (complete with two encores!) he had drafted for them. [RS]

DO YOU DRIP.FM?
Music nerds, behold! Based on HBO’s “quality, consistency and catalog” model, this new music subscription service “drips” new releases straight from the labels to your inbox several times a month. [LAWeekly]

KEEP COOL IN JAMES HETFIELD’S SUNGLASSES
The “road dog” Metallica frontman is releasing “faster than a speeding riff” pair of shades through Sutro Eyewear. And for just $219.99, they’re yours! [Vulture]

EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT
In the New York Times this weekend, Frank Ocean talks about love and life and his new album; and James Murphy talks about his almost starring role in Noah Baumbach’s since slashed The Corrections adaptation. And to soundtrack your reading, “Sweet Life,” a Pharrell assisted leak from Channel Orange. Happy weekend! [NYT/NYT / Fader]